Pink and White
by sweeteners
Summary: "If the sky is pink and white, if the ground is black and yellow" Claire left behind a chance at a secure and practical life when she moved back to her father's old farm to continue his legacy. Then again, what good is a practical life if it means turning down encounters with an arrogant thief and a chaotic witch? Oh, and tiny elves that aren't of much help. Claire/Skye
1. Nights

_This must be a joke..._

Claire glared down at the cursive script scribbled across the paper, trying her best to keep her brow from twitching noticeably. Of course, it had to be a massive joke. What exactly were these people running out here?

It'd been at least three weeks since Claire first moved out to Forget-Me-Not Valley to take over her father's rundown farm. Work was hard, the land was tragic, and it had been impossible for the blonde to make a living out here. Nothing she hadn't already vented to the Witch Princess on her daily visits.

She liked the Witch Princess, after all. She'd been the one to offer an explanation to the madness that had gone on unbeknownst to Claire in her sleep. Apparently, her mother up above begged the Harvest Goddess to help her child follow in her father's footsteps and become a successful farmer. This challenge proved difficult, as the farm had fallen into disarray, and the blonde, only ever knowing public speaking and entrepreneurship, struggled to keep up. So, for whatever reason, the Harvest Goddess was punished for Claire's lack of work ethic and now it was up to her to bring her – along with the Harvest Sprites – back.

Her head still reeled from all this newfound information of gods and goddesses and her ability to see them. The blonde was convinced it'd been a vivid fever dream and only until she found the Witch Princess' hut and spoke with her again the next day had she come to grips with this new reality.

And that's how Claire ended up in the middle of Romana's foyer, pulled into a huddle with Sebastian by Lumina. She was headed up the hill to visit the Witch Princess' hut when Lumina had spotted her and dragged her into the mansion without letting the farmer get a single word in.

The rich girl of the valley began rambling on and on about a thief coming to steal from her and the note he'd left warning her of the attack. Claire thought this was some sort of prank; Perhaps an initiation by the villagers before she could officially become part of the valley.

 _A thief? Leaving a note before he strikes?_ Claire's brows scrunched up at the note as she tried to make sense of it _. Is he an idiot? Does he not know the police could trace him through this note?_ Normally in the city, thieves never left warnings ahead of time; they simply struck whenever they felt like, and usually threatened to kill if anyone happened to be home. Claire nearly shuddered at the thought.

"Well? What do you say we do, Claire?" Lumina's eyes watched the farmer with a glint, waiting hopefully as if the blonde held the solution to all her problems.

"I... think it might be a prank, Lumina. I mean, what kind of thief leaves a notice before they strike?" She handed the note back to Lumina, trying her best to project a warm smile, but it came more as a grimace.

"It's not!" The brunette retorted, snatching the note from the farmer's hand and furrowing her brows as her eyes scanned the letter once more. "I've heard all the rumors about him! He ran rampant through Mineral Town last year, leaving notes and stealing from right under their noses! He drove Harris so insane, he nearly went to Doctor Trent for therapy sessions!"

 _Does she know I have no clue what she's talking about? Who are these people?_ The blonde let out an exasperated sigh, not very convinced. She placed a hand on Lumina's shoulder, hoping her touch would help calm her nerves. "Ok, how about this. I'll come over tonight and help wait out the thief with you. If he shows, we catch him. If he doesn't, _which he won't_ , we go home, and we sleep. How does that sound?"

Lumina's face lit up and a wide grin formed upon her lips. "Oh, really Claire? You'll come and stake out with us? Oh, thank you!" Without hesitation, the brunette threw her arms around the farmer and pulled her into a tight embrace. "I was so worried! With Grandma Romana away for the night and all, I didn't want to have to face that thief all alone! I mean, Sebastian is here, but he can only do so much!"

The farmer stumbled back, startled by Lumina's sudden affection. She cautiously reached around Lumina's back and curled her hands on her shoulders, half as reciprocation for the hug and half to pry the brunette off her. Lumina soon let go of the blonde and Claire stepped back, laughing half-heartedly. "Yeah, well... You don't have to worry. He won't be able to slip past us." _If he were real_ , Claire wanted so badly to add.

"Well, I should let you head on back to the farm then, huh?" Lumina signaled Sebastian to open the door for the farmer with her head, and Sebastian obliged, hurrying over to the large wooden doors and pulling one open.

"Yeah." Claire nodded, relieved that she was able to calm Lumina's nerves and be on her way. "See you tonight, Lumina."

"See you tonight!"

x

Claire knew everyone in the valley and they'd known her since she was three feet tall. Granted, there were a lot of new faces, but the older adults and elders of the valley were well familiarized with the blonde. After all, she'd made it a habit to come out a least one month out of the summer to spend time with her father on the ranch.

Claire didn't hold too many memories of her parents when they were together. After all, they had decided to divorce around her third birthday. Her mother moved back to the city and her father stayed in his hometown, Forget-Me-Not Valley. Her parents had always loved each other, and she knew that, but their inability to compromise was the nail in the coffin. Claire grew up in the city with her mother, spending every summer up until she was fifteen with her father.

The farmer looked up towards the vast dark sky above her. Variances of bright and dull stars were littered sporadically across the black canvas of the night, and the moon shined full over the valley. She'd forgotten how beautiful a clear night sky looked, as it was masked by gray and dark orange filters back home from the light pollution.

 _Back in the city._ She reminded herself. This was home now.

Claire made her way up the slate stone path that led up to Romana's mansion. Large cherry blossom trees lined the path symmetrically, leaving space in between for golden lamp posts. The warm light bathed parts of the path in a faint golden glow, as well as the leaves closest to the lamps. Up ahead, Claire could see the wrought iron gates grow closer, and the sound of the fountain water gushing from the spigot grew louder. The estate was lit up by two more lamp posts in front of the home, and light spilled onto the ground from the windows of illuminated rooms. A calm feeling washed over the farmer and she stood, closing her eyes and enjoying the sound of the rushing water and the leaves rustling from the gentle spring wind.

Even if tonight ended up being a total waste of time, there was something about the night-time that soothed her. With so many villagers and Harvest royalty and sprites counting on her, it felt relieving to have a moment of meditation.

"Hello, beautiful. Walking alone at night?"

Claire's eyes flew open and she jumped, startled by both the voice and how close the owner of said voice was. Her eyes fell up and down upon him, trying to remember if he was a villager she'd met years ago. He stood tall, with grown out silver hair swept off to the side. Fair skin and a chiseled face. Every feature of his face balanced out perfectly, complimenting each other.

 _Wait, did he just call me beautiful?_

"I-I'm sorry?" The blonde stumbled on her own words and her face began to glow pink. She couldn't put a name to the face and came to the conclusion they'd never met before. _I would've definitely remembered seeing someone this pretty when I was a teenager._

"It's not safe for a pretty girl such as yourself to be wandering alone at night, you know." The stranger looked up at Claire, revealing bright blue-green eyes. Her breath caught in her throat and she swallowed hard, trying not to gape at the man.

His comment and it's subliminal meaning sent chills throughout her body and she wrapped her arms around herself, trying to smooth out the goosebumps that were rising on her skin. She took a cautious step back and attempted to harden her expression. "Y-Yeah? What's it to you?" She gripped at her arms. "Who are you? I haven't seen you around here before."

He chuckled, running his fingers through his hair in an arrogant manner. "You've probably heard of me since I'm quite the ladies' man and a prince of the stars." He gestured towards the sky with his eyes, smirking.

"Prince of the..." The blonde trailed off. _Who on earth is this guy?_ Forget-Me-Not Valley had quite the cast of characters, but never anyone like this. He was attractive and through his body language and his way of speaking, it seemed like he knew it as well.

The man let out another throaty chuckle at Claire's apparent bewilderment. This was what he lived for, after all. Leaving women flustered was second nature to him.

A loud slam startled them, causing them to look over at the direction of the sound.

A familiar female voice screams from the other side of the fountain. "Hey! It's you! The famous thief!" Footsteps clicked against the brick pavement hurriedly, and from around the fountain appeared a short haired brunette with a yellow ribbon in her hair.

"Lumina?"

"Sorry," The silver-haired man begins to make his way around Claire, shooting her a wink as he does. "but I'm a bit pressed for time. I'm about to jet out."

 _Thief. He's the thief!_ "Hey, wait a minute! You're not going anywhere!" Claire quickly attempted to reach for his arm, but he was already out of arms-reach, and her fingertips brushed against him. "Who are you?"

"Call me Phantom Skye. I have a feeling we'll meet again, it's in the stars." He shot another wink at Claire before quickening his pace down the hill.

The blonde went to make a start for him but was cut off by Lumina, who was already running down the hill for him. "Wait right there!" Lumina screamed, reaching out to grab him by the shoulder.

In one swift motion, Skye spun around, clasping Lumina's hand in his own. She leaned back, stunned by his agility. She looked up at the thief with wide eyes, as that now-familiar smirk began to curl upon his lips. "Hold up beautiful. Don't let such raw anger steal away your beauty."

The brunette's breath hitched, and her face flushed. She let her hand fall from him as he turned around and started down the hill again. She watched him admiringly as he shrunk farther away from the hilltop.

Claire had witnessed the entire ordeal, her mouth gaping. She'd never, _ever_ known thieves to charm their victims before they take off back in the city, and she'd especially never seen someone fall right into their trap.

"L-Lumina!" She snapped, breaking the smaller girl out of her trance. "What are you doing?! Go after him!" Without waiting for a response, Claire darted after him, shifting her body weight backward as she tried not to trip and fall forward down the incline.

The farmer was too slow. Between her short interaction with Lumina, he'd managed to escape her sight, and once she made it to the foot of the hill, she couldn't see him anywhere. _No way. There's no way he's that fast._ Claire looked around but to no avail. She could see as far out as Vesta's farm but was met with the stillness of the night.

Lumina was just seconds behind, her shoes slapping against the slate as she made her way over to Claire. "He… got away." She huffed, pressing her hand against her chest and attempting to catch her breath.

"Yeah…" Claire was panting as well, although not as heavily as Lumina. "He did." Her eyes continued to scan the area, hoping to spot a trembling branch or bush where the thief might be hiding.

"That thief…" Lumina stood up straight, regaining her composure. "…Was pretty cool, wasn't he?"

* * *

 ** _Author's Note:_** _Hi! I'm still alive, I promise! This is my brand new Skye x Claire story that I've been brainstorming for the past year. I know it feels like a revised version of Stolen Heart, but I **promise,** it's going to be so much better. I just finished the outline for this story and there will be **lots** of drama and huge twists, all while tying into Skye's main storyline. I will take some ideas here and there from Stolen Heart but for the most part, this story will be different. I'm really excited about this one._

 _Originally, Witch Princess was supposed to be Claire's best friend in GLAT, but it seemed like it would be a hassle to make WP Claire's best friend when her best friend can't interact with her love interest or the rest of the townies. After reading The Air by InvaderSunshine, I realized WP would be a much better fit for a Skye/Claire fic._

 _As for Stolen Heart, I might just upload the original final chapters and finally put it to rest, haha. I feel too bad deleting it even though I don't like it anymore, but I feel even worse if I just leave it without an ending. Ah, decisions._

 _Anyways, please leave a review if you enjoyed!_


	2. Too Serious

"… So the whole walk up here, I'm thinking it's just a dumb prank, either at my expense or at Lumina's. Then, out of nowhere, some arrogant pretty boy just gets all in my face! And you know the funniest part of it all? _H_ _e_ was the thief all along! There actually _was_ a thief stupid enough to leave a note!"

The Witch Princess sat quietly, staring back at Claire with a disinterested glaze in her eyes. Her blonde hair was a puff of frizz, with some distinguishable curls intertwined. Stray curls sprung outwards at the top of her head. "This… is what you came over to tell me? So early in the morning?"

The farmer dropped her shoulders, crossing her arms as her lips downturned into a frown. Maybe her story was a little long-winded, but how did the Witch Princess not find this even remotely interesting? "You're always complaining that the townspeople are "too nice" and that "nothing exciting ever happens here", but when someone shows up to stir up some trouble, you're not interested?"

The witch rolled her eyes, letting out an audible sigh of annoyance through her nose before pulling her comforter over her shoulder and throwing herself back into her bed. "I've _heard_ about that stupid thief already. This is old news."

Claire dropped her arms to her side, leaning closer and peering over the comforter to get a better view of the smaller girl's face. "Wait, you have? What have you heard?"

After the catastrophe that was Lumina and Claire's stakeout session, the blonde had come to a silent decision to capture the thief herself. She couldn't believe _that_ was how he managed to escape. _Flirting? That was his evasive maneuver?_ If what Lumina mentioned about the thief terrorizing Mineral Town the year before was true, it meant he'd managed to evade capture since. Sure, the Phantom thief was an attractive man, but the air of cockiness that radiated from him made Claire's stomach churn. _If that poor sap thinks -I'm- going to melt in his hands like Lumina, he's got another thing coming._

"The locals were freaking out about it last year. Well, not as much as the Mineral Town locals." The witch snorted, a mean-spirited smile creeping its way onto her lips. "It was funny watching them squawk and panic like seagulls. Begging the policeman to help capture the "magical thief who's breaking into our homes!" She mocked the Mineral Town residents in a high pitched, nasal tone.

"Wait, magical? What do you mean by 'magical'?" The farmer chirped, stepping closer towards the witch.

"Hm… what did they mean by magical?" The witch looked up at her ceiling pensively, trying to recall what deemed the Phantom thief 'magical'. She shrugged, her eyes falling back onto Claire. "Honestly, I don't remember. I tuned them out after a while. You know how they are, completely overdramatic. Like, it's just a thief, why get so worked up about it? I figured they were just being paranoid country bumpkins."

Claire let out a breath. She hadn't realized she'd been holding it while waiting for the Witch Princess to respond. "Oh… I see." _Magical, of course it has something to do with magic!_ The blonde nearly groaned in annoyance. It wasn't easy to accept 'magic' as a legitimate reason as to why this thief was always able to get away, but it would explain how he disappeared from her sight so quickly. "Hey, you're not behind all of this, are you, Witch Princess?"

"Oh man! I wish!" The curly-haired girl hopped up, sitting upright in her bed. "Although, if I was the one pulling the strings, I wouldn't conjure up some _pretty_ thief. I'd make him old and scary, with a hook nose past his chin, and warts. Make him terrorize those dumb kids that live by the inn." An impish grin played on her lips. "That'll teach them to stop using my hut as a jungle gym." She muttered.

"I thought the villagers couldn't see you." Claire tilted her head.

The witch shook her head. " _Adults_ can't see me, but those kids can. Harvest King made it so as a punishment a few hundred years back." Witch Princess' jaw clenched as she inhaled deeply through her nose. _What a cruel punishment._ She hadn't been able to redeem herself enough to lift the punishment yet. "Once they get to a certain age though, they forget all about me, kind of like Santa Claus."

"No…" The blonde raised a brow. "You definitely keep your memories of Santa Claus. You just stop believing in him."

" _Whatever._ You get the point." Witch Princess waved her hand dismissively before her eyes widened in excitement and she perked up again. "Oh! You know what you should do? You should start telling all the townsfolk that the thief is here in the valley. They'll start freaking out." She let out a wicked laugh, throwing her head back as her blonde curls flew over her shoulder. "That would be such a laugh! Blow it all out of proportion, Claire. Make sure you get those hillbillies shaking in their boots!"

A loud sigh escaped Claire as maniacal laughter filled the hut. The Witch Princess was so keen on calling the villagers names; Did she forget the farmer was one of those 'hillbillies' too? The Witch Princess could be such a twisted girl sometimes, but Claire felt she could see past the surface. There were moments of humanity hidden in that little body, and Witch did a poor job of concealing it sometimes. She wasn't _all_ bad.

"Yeah… I should get going. I have some errands to run before I can start my work for the day." She made her way towards the door, raising her hand at the witch as a weak wave. "I'll see you later."

 **X**

"Heya, Claire! You're looking good today!" The blonde had just pushed past the door when Vesta's loud and accent-heavy voice greeted her.

"Hey, Vesta." The smaller girl approached the table with a smile. "I'm just here to buy some strawberry seeds." She placed her coin purse on the counter, snapping it open as she began to rummage for the correct amount of money.

"Ah, already moving on to strawberries, aren't ya?" The redhaired woman grinned as she reached behind her to the box labeled 'strawberries'. She plucked out a packet with the swiftness of someone who had done it a million times before and slid it over to the blonde. "You're feeling awfully ambitious. How's the farm coming along?"

"It's coming along." She heaved a sigh as she placed the gold coins in Vesta's hand. "It's just… I have crops here and there that die on me. It's sort of frustrating. I mean, I'm pretty sure I'm doing everything right, you know? Balanced amounts of water and fertilizer, keeping an eye out for pests, but some will still die."

"I see…" Vesta's grin fell from her face, replaced by ruminative gaze. "Tell me, Claire. How close are ya' planting your crops?"

"Oh, well" The farmer stepped back, placed her hands perpendicular to each other and left a six-inch gap in-between. "… about this far apart."

"Oh, hun…" The redhaired woman dropped her head as her body trembled with laughter. "That's just too damn close! No wonder your plants keep dying on ya'! Listen, you gotta do it at least this far apart." She imitated Claire's gesture, with a foot-long gap in-between her own hands. "Your crops are competing for nutrients, Claire. Ya' gotta space 'em out enough, otherwise, the runts will just keep dying off."

"Oh…" The blonde let out an uneasy laugh. It was embarrassing that she'd made such a simple mistake. Would Vesta write her off as incompetent? "I didn't realize they needed so much space…" She admitted sheepishly, shoving her hands in the pockets of her overalls. Claire only had so much free land. The rest of it was overtaken by boulders and wood trunks too large for her starter tools to destroy. She knew it wouldn't be a problem once she had enough money, but right now she'd have to make do with sporadic patches of land

"Don't be embarrassed, hun. We all started somewhere! Heck, Celia didn't properly treat the soil her first time around. That summer was awful! The whole field looked like somethin' out of those zombie movies! Tomatoes just rotting off the stems!" She guffawed her boisterous voice bouncing off the walls.

The front door of the shopped creaked open. A dark haired, olive skinned man shuffled his way into the shop, with his hands in his pockets and a hardened expression. "Yo, Vesta. Time to switch shifts." The blonde caught a quick glance from him, but he had yet to greet her.

"Already?" Vesta acknowledged the man with a nod as she made her way around the table. "Well Claire, if you got any more questions, make sure to ask Marlin here, got it?" She gave Claire a heavy-handed pat on the shoulder, nearly causing the farmer to stumble forward. Years of plowing, cultivating and lifting boxes of produce had left the shop owner with an impressive amount of strength. Sometimes she had trouble gauging how much force was _too_ much. "He's almost as seasoned as I am." She let out another laugh as she gave Claire's shoulder a squeeze and exited the store.

Marlin hardly acknowledged the blonde. His expression was still hardened as he took his place behind the counter. The two shared a brief moment of silence before Claire finally spoke.

"How are you, Marlin?"

"Huh?" Marlin's expression softened slightly as he blinked. He hadn't expected Claire to stick around much longer, much less make conversation. It caught him off guard. "Uh… I'm doing alright…"

The farmer noticed the awkward tension in the air and quickly became uncomfortable. She hadn't wanted to be rude and not greet Marlin, but perhaps she would've been better off leaving with Vesta. She shifted her body slightly towards the door and opened her mouth with the intention of saying goodbye when he spoke again.

"Did you… find everything you needed?" It was a question, but he had said it with uncertainty. What else was he supposed to say to her? Sure, he'd introduced himself to the farmer when she first came around, but the times that she'd come to purchase seeds, Vesta and Celia did most of the talking. They hadn't had much of conversation besides the typical small talk when you first meet someone.

"Sure did." Claire relaxed in place, turning back towards the shopkeeper. She held up the strawberry seeds she'd just purchased, shaking the packet and beaming. "I'm really excited to plant these seeds in. I'm a total fiend for fruits and all I've been able to grow since I got here is vegetables."

"You like fruits, huh?" A smile slowly played onto Marlin's lips as he crossed his arms. There weren't many who didn't enjoy fruits, but there were few who'd pick them over a bag of chips when it came time to snack. He'd noticed no one in town had quite the passion for fruits like he did, and Celia often teased him about it. Regardless, it never stopped her from prepping homemade fruit salads for him every summer.

"I could eat fruits for breakfast, lunch, and dinner." She admitted sheepishly with a nod. "I have quite the sweet tooth."

"I do too." His standoffish glare had dissipated from his face. "It's great when you get to grow them yourself. Vesta likes to take advantage in the summer and put me out in the fields since it's the season for most fruits."

Claire let out a good-natured laugh at the fact. "I'm wild for bananas. Personally, I think bananas don't receive enough love outside of smoothies and ice cream. You'd be surprised at the number of people who think bananas are gross."

"Not people I want to associate with." He chuckled. "Grapes are my absolute favorites." He leaned over the table, resting his elbow on the surface and signaled to Claire with a straight hand. "Look, I know you're used to the super sweet processed grapes back in the city, but…" He shook his head. "Those are no good. The ones the farmers grow here in the valley are the best. It's the closest thing you can get to drinking wine without it being taboo."

"Ah, I see… you're a wine guy." She teased. She pegged him more as a man who drank hard liquor and could hold it, but wine made him much less intimidating.

"That's me…" He let out a laugh through his nose. "Wine guy. You like wine too?"

She shook her head. "I haven't tried it enough. I've liked the little that I've tried of it, but most of the alcohol I've drunk has been… unknown mixes in plastic red cups." Claire didn't catch his eye, trying her best not to scrunch her face or grimace in embarrassment. She felt childish admitting she'd only drank hard liquor mixes like most twenty-somethings, especially to a man who carried himself the way he did. He seemed so mature the way he kept to himself like he knew better than to involve himself with the gossips of the valley or become the center of the rumor mill himself. Drinking wine was something she'd seen full-fledged adults to do, not twenty-somethings like her.

"Ah… I see." He stood up straight, removing himself from atop of the table. He'd almost forgotten Claire was fresh out of school. "We've all been there." He said with a passive shrug. "You should visit the Blue Bar when you get the chance and have Griffith serve you some of his favorites. Wine goes down a lot smoother than liquor." He cracked a tiny smile.

The blonde let out a breath of relief. She had been afraid he'd look at her with disdain, or even think less of her. She nodded in acknowledgment. "I'll be sure to do it as soon as my workload eases up."

The creak of the door startled Claire, as she'd nearly forgotten where she was and all the work she had pending. It was one of the first conversations she'd had that didn't revolve around Claire's farm, a topic she was already growing sick of.

"Good afternoon, Marlin!" Ruby the innkeeper was now making her way towards Marlin. "Oh! Claire, you're here too. I hope I wasn't interrupting anything. I had to pass by to purchase some seeds for the garden I'm growing behind the inn."

The farmer shook her head. "No, of course not. I was just leaving." She looked over at Marlin and their eyes locked. She smiled and nodded as a goodbye, and he nodded back, before looking down at the innkeeper who was counting her gold coins on the table. She pulled the door open and quickly made her way out as Ruby began to speak about her newly planted garden and the foods she'd been serving to her guests at the inn.

She felt good about the conversation she'd had with Marlin. She'd been afraid he didn't like her at first, as they only exchanged a couple words since she'd moved into town and he always seemed uninterested whenever she came around. But perhaps she was too quick to antagonize him. He seemed just as nice as the rest of the people in the valley, albeit much more to himself. She'd have to head down to the bar once she felt she deserved a break to try out some wines.

 **X**

 ** _Author's Notes:_** _I love Marlin. I didn't use to, but after courting him in my latest HM run I realized he's really such soft. He's standoffish and unknowingly rude but once you butter him up he's a softy. I tried to make Claire seem… insecure lol. Just in the sense that she's in a mostly unfamiliar place, and she doesn't want anyone to think she's an airhead, and she doesn't want people to dislike her. These starting chapters are probably going to be a little short because I lost my brainstorming notes *cries* and I have to try and rewrite everything I had planned out yikes. Anyways, If you enjoyed, please leave a review! I love hearing all your feedback!_


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